Excursion to the Melbourne Aquarium
July 2005

We arrived at the Aquarium and we met our guide, Jason, who was fantastic. He had loads of knowledge and patience to answer all our questions and tailored the program to suit our interests as well as the students' impressive level of understanding. We were able to sit in front of large tanks of aquatic life, observe, discuss, draw and generally be in awe.

Here is a summary of the students' report:

Jaiden: "I learnt a lot from our excursion. I enjoyed learning about how different fish live in different environments. I liked the Lion Fish the most".

Piero: "I learned that fish breathe through their gills. I enjoyed learning about all the fish and sharks. My favourite was the Cuttle Fish. Male Cuttle Fish change their colours to scare off other males."

Tristan: "I enjoyed it when we went through a tunnel with all the Grey Nurse Sharks, all the Rays and other sharks. My favourite part was when we went to see the big octopus. We could only see his head, body and one of his tentacles because he was hiding."

Daniel: "I learnt that there are different types of habitats for each fish. I liked the Eagle Ray, the Murray Cod who was a huge, grumpy fish who likes to live alone. I also liked the car fish tank"

Madisan: "I learn that crabs are invertebrates. I liked the manta ray and the tropical fish."

Molly: "I learnt that vertebrates have a spinal cord and the invertebrates don't. My favourite animals were the Eagle Ray and the Sea Dragons.

Xavier: "I learnt that the Cuttle Fish change their colours when they are mad. My favourite part was touching the Sea Star."

Alex: " I learnt that some animals change their colours to scare predators away and to camouflage themselves. I liked the giant octopus."

Ruby: "I learnt that some animals change colour to fight. I liked the Sea Dragons because they camouflage themselves to look like seaweed to hide from predators. I also liked the Rainbow Jellyfish.

Lauren: "I learnt that not all Stingrays actually sting. I saw shark eggs the shape of a walnut. I liked the Lion Fish and the turtle the most. Sophie: "My favourite animal was the Seven Gill Shark. I learnt that the Sea Horses hide in the Seaweed.

A big thank you to Sabrina Tan, Maria Kelly and Lyn Beinat for taking us and sharing the experience with us. Without their time, energy and transport we would not have been able to go. So thank you!